The following contains spoilers for the series premiere of Loki.
Fan favorite Marvel villain Loki finally makes his Disney Plus debut in his self-titled series. As usual, one of Loki's schemes land him in hot water. This time, it's not with a superhero, but with a secret organization responsible for keeping the timeline in check. This version of Loki, who hasn't yet undergone all of the character development he received after The Avengers, has a chance to do some good after striking a deal with a member of the Time Variance Authority.
The TVA, and several of its characters, has its root in Marvel comics. Their function - preserving the timeline - is the same on both the page and the screen. While the first episode serves as largely an introduction to the group and to catch the audience up to where (and when) Loki is in his development, along the way there are quite a few Easter eggs for Marvel fans to catch.
The Episode Title
"Glorious Purpose" is a phrase Marvel fans will certainly associate with the main character. His line about being "burdened with glorious purpose" is what the premiere episode references. That particular line even gets restated in the episode multiple times. While it's easily the most recognizable quote being reused, it isn't the only one.
When Agent Mobius tries to talk to Loki about trust, he balks. He specifically states, "trust is for children." It's a twist on the phrase that Black Widow used when Loki tried to talk to her about her feelings for Hawkeye. He tried to get in her head in The Avengers, noting that she loved him, but Natasha asserted, "love is for children," explaining that she owed Clint Barton her life.
Recycled Footage
The episode opens with a familiar scene. Not only is it what happens after the events of The Avengers, but it's also the time traveling version of it from Avengers: Endgame. There is clearly some new footage added in to give the audience a look at the event from Loki's perspective instead of Captain America's.
All of the footage used when Mobius provides Loki with his "greatest hits" appears in the MCU. Footage from Thor: The Dark World and Thor: Ragnarok are used, as well as Avengers: Infinity War. For Loki, those events haven't happened yet, but for the audience, they're a reminder of what the character would go through.
The Marvel Logo
The Marvel Studios logo typically appears red when the properties begin. That's not true for Loki. Instead, it appears green. That's a nod to Loki's signature color from the comics, of course, even if he doesn't get to wear much green in the episode.
Marvel doesn't change their logo as an Easter egg very often. The most recent appearance of a different logo happens in WandaVision. The eighth episode featured a purple logo as that color is the signature shade for Agatha Harkness.
Unknown Robots
When Loki is brought into the TVA, there is what looks like a regular metal detector set up for time variants to walk through. As is pointed out to Loki, however, it's made to scan for robots. The machine melts robots from the inside out. The guard even additionally points out that it does it to people who don't even know they're robots.
Loki is perplexed by the idea of someone not knowing they're a robot, but it's pretty common in Marvel. Life Model Decoys, synthetic beings made as robotic clones of real people, are a particular favorite of Nick Fury's in the comics. They also had a large arc in Agents Of SHIELD's fourth season.
Miss Minutes And The Animated TVA
Animation fans will recognize Tara Strong as the voice of Miss Minutes. MissMinutes provides Loki with a clearly Jurassic Park-inspired walk through the history of the TVA. It's what's included in the animation that's most interesting.
When Miss Minutes references an uprising in the multiversal war, the graphic used looks to be the Kree and members of the Nova Corps fighting, possible on Thanos' homeworld Titan. The explanation for the "sacred timeline" is also courtesy of a comic book character named Madame Sanctity. She coined the phrase in a Cable comic book, another time traveler.
Miss Minutes also calls someone splitting from their timeline a "Nexus event." This is when variants are created, but it's also not the first time the Marvel audience will have heard the phrased. "Nexus" was the name of a fictional medication advertised in WandaVision. It's also the name for a place where multiple realities collide in the comics, or a being able to protect one version of reality from another, like the Scarlet Witch.
Interesting Background Appearances
There are a lot of TVA agents coming and going in the background. Not all of them look like the average human being. When Loki is being escorted into the TVA, for example, there's a Skrull standing in front of the desk. The Skrull wears a track suit instead of a TVA uniform. They also aren't in custody like Loki. That means they are likely an agent, but their presence acts as a reminder that they are still present in the MCU with a role in Secret Invasion on the way.
Another interesting background appearance isn't in the form of a living person, but in a painting. The courtroom for the TVA features painted images of TVA agents on the walls. One of those painted agents has a striking resemblance to a young Stan Lee. Lee is known for his Marvel cameos, but the spots filmed right up until his death have all been used.
Significant Numbers
It's no secret that number sequences can make for a fun Easter egg hunt for fans. Comic book issues, birthdays, and more often make it into MCU properties. Not every number sequence is likely to be significant, but these three are notable.
When Loki gets a view of the high-tech city outside of the TVA's window, one of the tower-like structures has "T282" across one of the domes. A little difficult to make out, it could easily be a coincidence. It corresponds to Thor #282 though. That particular issue features the first appearance of the Time Keepers.
When Loki finishes watching his "greatest hits," the ribbon of film catches in the machine before sputtering to a stop. The end of that film has ETH 616 written on it. That will be recognizable to comic book fans as Earth-616. Each Earth in the multiverse gets its own designated number. 616 happens to be the main timeline in Marvel comics.
Loki's file contains some interesting information. In addition to confirming the character as gender-fluid, it designates him as operating within sector "1900-2099." It's an odd number sequence largely because it calls to mind a series of comics that Marvel created in the '90s. Those characters designated with 2099 were all from a possible future timeline. Spider-Man 2099 even appeared in the end credits of Into The Spider-verse recently.
A '90s Shoutout
The Loki premiere travels to a handful of different time periods, but the 1990s isn't one of them. There is something those who grew up in the '90s might recognize though. Owen Wilson's Agent Mobius has a penchant for a particular drink that was only made by Pepsi Co. in the mid to late '90s. When he and Loki sit to take a walk through Loki's recent memories, Mobius pops the top on a can of Josta. Josta was the first energy drink marketed in the United States, but it was discontinued after only a few short years.
The Time Twister
The device used to return Loki a few seconds in the past (repeatedly) is called a time twister. Loki even eventually uses it against B-15 to gain the upper hand briefly. That device doesn't appear in the comics, but creatures with the same name do.
The TVA creates the Time Twisters to help them monitor the timeline. They're created with the intention of going forward and back, but end up only able to go backward in time.
Infinity Stones As Paper Weights
Casey revealing a drawer full of Infinity Stones isn't just a great gag for Loki. It demonstrates that the scale of power in the MCU is larger than fans realize. The Infinity Stones are no longer the most powerful objects around. Most of the ones present in the drawer appear to be of the time and reality persuasions. In fact, it looks like the only one missing for sure is the mind stone - the same one that resided in Vision's head.
There are also some other interesting objects in the drawer. There's a poker chip worth $5,000, a war medal that's been logged as evidence, and even a Honus Wagner baseball card. That's one of the most valuable baseball cards ever made.
Is Kang Coming To Loki?
Comic book villain and time-traveler Kang The Conqueror is set to be a villain in Phase 4 of the MCU. He's supposed to appear in the next Ant-Man and the Wasp movie, but fans wonder if he might be appearing earlier than that, due in large part to a potential leak from the set of Loki. The first episode, however, also sets up quite a few hints at the possibility of an appearance.
For one thing, Ravonna Renslayer is the judge at Loki's trial. While her character isn't named in the episode, Gugu Mbatha-Raw is credited as playing the character. That particular character is the daughter of 40th-century royalty in the comics. She's also the object of Kang's affection. When he falls for her, he changes his mind about always killing the rulers of lands he conquers. Her presence could hint to his involvement in the timeline shenanigans.
Also hinting at his presence is the final time travel scene of the episode. In it, TVA agents discover an artifact from the 31st century. That is exactly the time period Kang is from in the comics. He's even got a shout-out in that Thor #282 Easter egg. Kang battled Thor in that issue in the guise of Immortus.
Fans will have to wait and see as new episodes of Loki drop on Disney Plus every Wednesday.